Two militants killed in Kashmir gunfight

Srinagar, Dec 28 (IANS) Two militants were killed and three security personnel injured Friday in a gunfight between separatist guerrillas and security forces in Kashmir's district headquarters town of Pulwama, police said.

The slain militants have been identified as Imtiyaz Ahmed Teli alias Fahadullah Kashmiri, a resident of Pulwama, and Mohammad Aamir Bhat alias Khalid alias Khursheed, a resident of Shopian.

"Imtiyaz Ahmed Teli was involved in a grenade attack at Narwal (in Jammu) in November this year, in which one person was killed and five others were injured," Deputy Inspector General (south Kashmir) Vijay Kumar said.

"The two killed militants were also involved in the killing of four tourists, all women, in a grenade attack in Bijbehara of Anantnag district in July this year," the DIG added.

"An army major, a captain and a policeman were injured in the gunfight," Kumar said, adding that when the major was being taken to hospital for treatment, a mob attacked the ambulance with stones.

At least seven people were injured in retaliatory action by the security forces, police said.

A team of district police, 55 Rashtriya Rifles and 182 battalion of CRPF (Central Reserve Police Force) launched a search operation at Budgam in Asthana Mohalla of Pulwama early Friday following information about the presence of militants there, a police statement said.

"The militants opened fire on the security forces during the search, triggering a gunfight in which two militant were killed," it said.

The report by IANS on the Bijbehara attack was earlier denied both by the police as well as the separatist leaders, who said the four tourists were killed in a gas cylinder explosion inside the vehicle that was carrying them.